The barn is the best place for alfalfa if all conditions are right. Cases of spontaneous combustion in stack and mow make farmers fearful of using the barn, especially for the first cutting, which is always most difficult to cure. There are certain conditions that must be observed if this hay is to complete its curing properly and safely in the mow. The bottom of the mow should be elevated at least a foot from the ground, floored with poles or joists, and they should be about two-thirds covered with boards or other material in such a way as to provide numerous openings or air spaces of considerable size. If the mow already has a tight floor, a part of the flooring should be removed before the hay is put in. Then a box or barrel should be placed in the center of the space and lifted up as the filling proceeds. If the mow is over thirty feet long, a second barrel should be used; that is, an air shaft should be left in about each fifteen to twenty feet. A layer of dry hay or straw sandwiched in about every four of five feet, as the mow fills, can be used to much advantage. If the mow is large enough in length and width, an excellent, safe plan is to spread the first cutting over the entire bottom, filling up to a height of four or five feet. The second cutting may be placed over this, on top of a layer of straw, and the third cutting over this. There is virtually no danger from spontaneous combustion or from mold if this is done, and the hay will be as bright and green and almost as rich in protein in January as when harvested. J. W. Berry of Jewell county, Kansas, member of the board of regents of the state agricultural college, uses this method and bales his hay in October for the city markets, finding it in perfect condition. He puts his hay into the mow green but not wet, direct from the cocks, or windrows the day it is cut, in layers about four feet deep, with the slightest possible loss of leaves, no bleaching and no injury by dew. In 1905 he cut his alfalfa four times and stored the fourth cutting on top of the three preceding. He says that having an open floor and plenty of air from the outside, the hay can be put in the barn as described; that it should not be tramped, and it will settle and cure perfectly. The bottom layer or first cutting may show some dust when taken out if handled loose, but the color will be good and it will bale in with the other cuttings and all grade well. Hay cured in this way in 1904 graded “choice” in the St. Louis market.